Gordon Hutchinson Concealed Carry Training

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The Great New Orleans Gun Grab

A searing expose' of the scandal of gun confiscations that occurred in New Orleans in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. Lest we ever forget.

The Quest and the Quarry

A hunting story of the Deep South. How generations of kids from a farming family are taught the lessons of life through the experience of the hunt by one wise old grandfather, and a line of trophy bucks they pursue.

About Me

Author: "THE GREAT NEW ORLEANS GUN GRAB" (with Todd Masson), an expose' of the anarchy and outrageous behavior of civil authorities who confiscated thousands of guns from law-abiding citizens in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.
Also the author of "THE QUEST AND THE QUARRY"--a southern novel of the hunt.
Firearms columnist for LOUISIANA, NORTH & SOUTH CAROLINA, and MISSISSIPPI SPORTSMAN magazines.
Founding Member of the
Vast Right Wing Conspiracy.
Training Officer and Spokesperson
for the Lunatic Fringe.
Unapologetic Gun Nut
(with apologies to David E. Petzal.) Former Airborne Infantry Officer (82nd Airborne Division.) Former law enforcement firearms instructor. Current concealed carry instructor.
gordonhutchinson.com

Katrina Survivors Take Arms

Jo Ann Guidos, owner of Kajun's Bar, stood off looters with her handguns, Remington 1100 shotgun, and a motley crew of regulars at her bar. They are shown here standing outside the bar a day or two before her guns were confiscated by U.S. Marshals as she was attempting to load her vehicles and get out of the madness of New Orleans. Photo courtesy of Jo Ann Guidos

"8 Bodies In Place"

These are the ubiquitous signs--the hex symbols of the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. Teams would spray the signs on the outside of buildings once they had been searched. At the top was the date of the search. On each side of the "X" was the numerical identifier of the unit conducting the search. At the bottom of the symbol was the number of bodies found in the building. In this case, eight people were found in Jo Ann Guido's bar. If the bodies were not alive, the more chilling "Dead" would be added under the number. Photo courtesy Jo Ann Guidos.

Followers

Thursday, July 19, 2012

There has been much talk in the Louisiana firearms community over a proposed constitutional amendment known as Article 874. This amendment will change current constitutional wording pertaining to gun ownership, and the legal vernacular has confused many people, giving rise to fear our much admired gun freedoms would be hindered, or limited some way.

This is a letter I received from Dan Zelenka, a New Orleans attorney and president of the Louisiana Shooting Association. The LSA (www.louisianashooting.com) is the de facto state rifle and pistol association for the state of Louisiana.

The LSA actively supports and defends our firearms rights in the legislature through lobbying and actionable calls to their members.

I think Dan does a better job here than I have seen anywhere in discussing and explaining this proposed legislation. It (the proposed amendment) has caused much discussion in the firearms community--the most common complaint being couched in the general terms of worrying that "if it ain't broke, don't fix it."

Many folks have discussed how this proposed amendment might be used to change and limit our rights to concealed carry.

I think Dan explains here how easily it (meaning our concealed carry rights) could be "broken"--and this proposed legislation defends that right.

I plan to vote in favor of Article 874 in November. I hope you will also do so.

To: Members of the Louisiana Shooting Association

From: Dan Zelenka, President

Several uninformed "authorities" have recently released false information about the upcoming ACT 874 that will be on the Louisiana ballot in November.

Under our current Louisiana constitution, the legislature is not supposed to pass any laws abridging our right to keep and bear arms unless the law involves concealed carry. Note that they can pass any restriction on concealed carry that strikes their fancy, even an outright ban. That in itself should cause you to support Act 874. The legislature, however, on any number of occasions has refused to believe that constitutional limits apply to its power. Laws that restrict our gun rights do get passed.

Enter the Louisiana judicial system, the branch of government that is supposed to protect us poor citizens from the legislature when it oversteps its constitutional authority. Unfortunately, the Louisiana Supreme Court has ruled that a law that infringes on your right to keep and bear arms is constitutional if it passes the "rational basis" test. Under the rational basis test, the court asks itself whether the legislature had a rational basis for passing the law in question. If the court can discern any rational basis for the law, it will declare the law to be constitutional. This is the current state of Louisiana law under the existing Article I, Section 11 of its constitution.

The 1974 Constitution currently reads:

§11. Right to Keep and Bear Arms

Section 11. The right of each citizen to keep and bear arms shall not be abridged, but this provision shall not prevent the passage of laws to prohibit the carrying of weapons concealed on the person.

Act 874, should it pass in November, provides NO carte blanche authority for the legislature to restrict concealed carry.